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The 2020s have been one of the most interesting times to be a gamer. As gaming has gone increasingly digital, there's been an explosion in video games from all countries and in all genres. Yet few genres have benefited more than those who love the fantasy genre, which has seen some incredible projects be released.
The best fantasy games introduce players to imaginative and expansive worlds. They feature great lore that encourages the players to want to explore them further so they can learn more and more. But more than anything, they feel absolutely amazing to play, whether that means mastering a title's action-based combat, or discovering the intricacies of a turn-based combat system.
The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom Deserves More Respect Than It Gets
It feels like The Legend of Zelda: Tears of the Kingdom is overlooked compared to 2017's Breath of the Wild. Instead of offering a completely new universe, Tears of the Kingdom continues the adventures in the Breath of the Wild setting, this time following Link as he attempts to fight back against a strange "gloom" that's threatening the land of Hyrule.
Like Breath of the Wild,Tears of the Kingdom still has the same vast open world for players to explore. There's also still all the fun physics interactions that challenge the player to think outside the box about how they solve puzzles and approach battles. Still, Tears adds onto the world in a meaningful way, creating an experience that cannot be replicated by its predecessor.
Tears of the Kingdom adds incredible verticality through the addition of the game's sky islands, inviting players to travel into the air to find new challenges and treasure. The game also adds a myriad of new abilities to interact with the world, from the ability to fuse items together, to the powerful Ultrahand ability that effectively allows Link to construct nearly anything players imagine.
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 Was The Biggest Surprise Of 2025
Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 stole the gaming industry's heart in 2025. Taking place in a world reminiscent of classic Belle Époque french history, the game follows the last few members of Expedition 33 as they work to take down the mysterious Paintress, who erases people from existence every year by painting a number. Though their mission goes wrong almost instantly, they use their collective power to explore the Paintress' realm, hoping to finally discover a method to stop her.
After making a surprise appearance at the Xbox Gaming Showcase in 2024, Expedition 33 became one of the most anticipated games of the following year. Fortunately, it was able to deliver on that promise, hooking players almost from the beginning thanks to its simple hook and heart-wrenching prologue. From there, it tells one of gaming's best narratives, with incredible world-building that gradually fleshes out this strange yet breathtaking new world with every step.
Expedition 33 is more than just a beautiful tale. A love letter to great though forgotten JRPGs, the game offers one of the most innovative takes on turn-based gaming in a while. By incorporating a dodge/parry system, players can't just mindlessly attack, but instead have to learn enemy timing to survive battles.
Trails in the Sky First Chapter Is An Amazing Remake of One of the Best JRPGs
If there's one studio that doesn't get nearly enough credit, it's Nihon Falcom. Through their Trails series, they've created an interconnected franchise of games for over twenty years now. Featuring some of the best world building in gaming, each new sub-franchise takes players to different countries, allowing players to learn each location's politics and inner workings.
After having so many games for so long, Falcom decided to go back to basics and remake the original game for the series' 20th anniversary, resulting in Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter. Just like the original, 1st Chapter takes players to the small country of Liberl. The game follows the adventures of Estelle and Joshua Bright, two teenagers that have recently passed their Junior Bracer exam, allowing them to take on missions to help out cities in the nation.
To upgrade from Junior to Senior Bracers, Estelle and Joshua are asked to travel around the country and gain letters of recommendation from every major city's bracer branch. Seemingly a simple job, but one that becomes much more difficult as they learn more about the problems in each city.
Trails in the Sky 1st Chapter is an amazing JRPG that, for once, doesn't require a group of teenagers to save the world. Though the takes escalate over time, it's still largely a political drama. Fortunately, Falcom's ability to craft a believable, lived-in world makes all the political aspects interesting while the game expands the world as they explore.
Elden Ring Is One Of The Greatest Open-World Games Ever Made
Elden Ring is the best example of building up momentum over multiple games. FromSoftware spent the majority of the 2010s creating a reputation for themselves by releasing incredible titles and pioneering the Soulslike genre. When they announced they were doing their own open-world title featuring lore written by George R.R. Martin, the excitement went through the roof.
Once again though, FromSoft created a game that not only met, but exceeded expectations. Elden Ring isn't just a great fantasy game, but one of the greatest games of the generation, period. It truly embraces the idea of making every second feel rewarding, whether it's delving into the game's arcane lore, or discovering a new hidden area with treasure to acquire and enemies to battle.
Its massive open-world also embraces verticality, meaning players can find themselves deep in the depths or in the skies of the world as they continue their journey. Elden Ring became a sensation online, as people who had never even played Souls-like titles dived in. The game's endless customization for skills, armor, and weaponry meant everyone was able to discover their own way to play the game.
Baldur's Gate 3 Offers The Ultimate High Fantasy Experience
There's a reason why Baldur's Gate 3 won every award the year it came out. Despite being a cRPG, it was a title that so many gamers felt like they had to play. The narrative follows a group of adventurers bound together after having mind flayers implanted in them, and trying to figure out a way to get rid of them before they're all transformed into Illithids.
Their journey takes them across the Forgotten Realms, from the Underdark to the legendary Baldur's Gate itself. Baldur's Gate 3 has everything fantasy fans want in a game: plenty of cool, expansive locations, brilliantly written characters, and open-ended quests that players can solve in a number of ways. While Larian's turn-based combat takes some time to adjust to, the options feel limitless once they do.
